Mud motor assembly

A method to provide torque and power to a rotary drill bit rotating clockwise attached to a drive shaft of a mud motor assembly comprising at least the following steps:

• a. providing relatively high pressure mud from a drill pipe attached to an up-hole end of said mud motor assembly;
• b. passing at least a first portion of said relatively high pressure mud through a first hydraulic chamber wherein the first piston rotates a first crankshaft clockwise about its own rotation axis from its first relative starting position at 0 degrees through a first angle of at least 210 degrees, but less than 360 degrees during the first power stroke;
• c. mechanically coupling said first crankshaft by a first ratchet means to a first portion of said drive shaft to provide clockwise rotational power to said drive shaft during said first power stroke;
• d. passing at least a second portion of said relatively high pressure mud through a second hydraulic chamber wherein said second piston rotates a second crankshaft clockwise about its own rotation axis from its first relative starting position of 0 degrees through a second angle of at least 210 degrees, but less than 360 degrees during said second power stroke;
• e. mechanically coupling said second crankshaft by a second ratchet means to a second portion of said drive shaft to provide clockwise rotational power to said drive shaft during said second power stroke;
• and
• f. providing first control means of said first ratchet means, and providing second control means of said second ratchet means, to control the relative timing of rotations of said first crankshaft and said second crankshaft so that at the particular time that said first crankshaft has rotated from a first relative starting position through 180 degrees nearing the end of said first power stroke at 210 degrees, said second crankshaft begins rotational motion from a relative starting position of 0 degrees where said second power stroke begins.

A mud motor apparatus, comprising:

• a housing having a first end and a second end, the housing configured to fit within a drill pipe, the housing configured to receive high pressure mud;
• a rotary drill bit disposed at the second end of the housing;
• a single drive shaft disposed with the housing and connected to the rotary drill bit;
• a plurality of hydraulic chambers positioned within the housing;
• a piston positioned in each hydraulic chamber, each piston operatively associated with the drive shaft and having a first surface parallel to the axis of the drive shaft and extending radially outwardly from a first edge to a second edge, wherein the second edge is adjacent an inner surface of the housing;
• wherein said drive shaft receives at least a first portion of its rotational torque from any high pressure mud flowing through at least one of the plurality of hydraulic chambers within said housing, and said drive shaft receives at least a second portion of its rotational torque from any high pressure mud flowing through at least a second of the plurality of hydraulic chambers within said apparatus.